Fireworks explode over and around the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Sydney Opera House during new year celebrations

As revellers up and down the UK put their champagne in the fridge in preparation for midnight, in some parts of the world the bottles have already been uncorked.

Fireworks have already illuminated the skies of New Zealand, Australia, Eastern Russia, Japan and Korea, because 2013 has already started.

More than 1.5 million people gathered to see the traditional New Year's Eve fireworks display in Sydney harbour, according to Lord Mayor Clover Moore.

Sydney's skyline exploded in red, gold, pink and green as the $6.6m fireworks display was propelled into the sky.

The event, chaired by creative ambassador Kylie Minogue, took place a couple of hours after the clock struck twelve in Auckland, and two hours before Seoul and Tokyo celebrated the midnight hour.

However the very first country to celebrate the end of 2012 and the beginning of the new year was the Kiritimati, or Christmas Island, an atoll in the deep pacific ocean part of the Republic of Kiribati.

Fireworks explode around the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Sydney Opera HouseReutersTaiwan's tallest building, Taipei 101, lights up like a rocket as 2013 celebrations get under way (Reuters)ReutersFireworks explode over Sydney's skylineReutersMore than 1.5 million people gathered to see the traditional New Year's Eve fireworks display in Sydney harbourReutersSydney's skyline exploded in red, gold, pink and greenReuters2013 celebrations in Sydney, AustraliaReutersLights on the Tokyo Tower, JapanInstagramFireworks explode over and around the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Sydney Opera House during new year celebrations2013 celebrations in Hong KongReutersFireworks light the sky over Victoria Harbour during a pyrotechnic show to celebrate the New Year in Hong KongReutersFireworks explode over the skyline of Putrajaya, MalaysiaReutersFireworks explode near the Malaysia's landmark Petronas Twin Towers during New Year celebrations in Kuala LumpurReutersJapanese revellers release balloonsReutersAway from the fireworks, sand artists In Puri, India, greet 2013 with a sculptureReutersNew Year in BeijingReuters